Sixteen members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, including Speaker Martin Amaewhule, formally defected from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to President Bola Tinubu’s All Progressives Congress (APC) on Friday, citing irreconcilable divisions within their former party.
The announcement came during a plenary session in Port Harcourt, marking a significant realignment in the oil-rich state’s volatile political landscape, still reeling from a protracted feud between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike.
“Distinguished colleagues, APC is my new party,” Amaewhule declared on the floor of the House. “I will do all that is needed to be done towards ensuring that the party card of the All Progressives Congress is issued to me in no time. But as I speak today, I am a member of the All Progressives Congress.”
The speaker expressed enthusiasm for aligning with the federal government, stating: “I am happy to be a member of APC so that we can join forces with Mr President. Mr President is doing so much for this country.”
Amaewhule praised Tinubu for “meaning well for Nigeria” and showing “love to Rivers State”, while attributing the move primarily to internal PDP fractures that rendered continued membership untenable.
The defectors, widely seen as loyal to Wike, include Deputy Speaker Dumle Maol and several others, though a full list was not immediately released.
This development revives echoes of a similar 2023 episode when a larger group of pro-Wike lawmakers announced a switch to the APC amid escalating tensions with Fubara, only for legal battles and denials to complicate their status in subsequent years.
Analysts view the fresh defections as a strategic bid to bolster ties with the presidency ahead of future elections, potentially tipping legislative control further toward federal influence in a state long dominated by PDP dynamics.
No immediate response emerged from Governor Fubara’s camp or PDP leadership, but the move is expected to intensify rivalries, with conflicting court rulings having previously muddied the assembly’s legitimacy.
The APC has yet to issue an official welcome, but observers anticipate swift integration to consolidate gains in southern Nigeria’s political heartland.
